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Rain Partier

There has been a sudden explosion in the indie world as of late. Image owns the charts on trades thanks to The Walking Dead. Dark Horse is waving its flag high with its own brand of digital publishing and giving free books generously in an effort to entice new readers. From Top Cow, we had a brilliant Kickstarter marketing gamble, in which they were able to give away physical copies of the first story arc of Cyber Force for free. The smaller guys are in the ring, and they are swinging hard for that big K.O. through innovation and a genuine interest in their fan base.

None, as of late, seem to be trying as hard as the folks at Valiant when it comes to curve ball approaches to snagging new fans. They have the resurrected gold issue plan, where fans are rewarded for going out and being vocal fans of the company and documenting the actions. They organized a unique variant cover for every fan who pulls their issues monthly. They sucker punched us in the nostalgia with 8-bit covers, and in a unique opening blow, they invented the QR covers as their flagship titles debuted. These covers give us a unique experience in which we can be serenaded by the burly angry voices of some of Valiant’s leading men. All you need is a smart phone.

Now, now we have the 8-bit, QR hybrid cover, and I feel all foaming at the mouth Golem-like crazy over here. The cover presents us with a full 8-bit back story to help the new fans understand the upcoming comic event, Unity. It is a move that plays on video game levels, the current owners well aware that Valiant drew in a large crowd during the 90’s, at the height of the 8-bit game market. And it doubles back, giving new readers a chance to step into a story, and have the plot played out before their eyes in a unique and inviting way.

My only fear is this innovative bit of bait will be cast into the depths, buried beneath the classic “one out of fifty ordered” gimmick, that basically prevents its brilliance from reaching smaller shops and many new prying eyes.

There has been a sudden explosion in the indie world as of late. Image owns the charts on trades thanks to The Walking Dead. Dark Horse is waving its flag high with its own brand of digital publishing and giving free books generously in an effort to entice new readers. From Top Cow, we had a brilliant Kickstarter marketing gamble, in which they were able to give away physical copies of the first story arc of Cyber Force for free. The smaller guys are in the ring, and they are swinging hard for that big K.O. through innovation and a genuine interest in their fan base.

None, as of late, seem to be trying as hard as the folks at Valiant when it comes to curve ball approaches to snagging new fans. They have the resurrected gold issue plan, where fans are rewarded for going out and being vocal fans of the company and documenting the actions. They organized a unique variant cover for every fan who pulls their issues monthly. They sucker punched us in the nostalgia with 8-bit covers, and in a unique opening blow, they invented the QR covers as their flagship titles debuted. These covers give us a unique experience in which we can be serenaded by the burly angry voices of some of Valiant’s leading men. All you need is a smart phone.

Now, now we have the 8-bit, QR hybrid cover, and I feel all foaming at the mouth Golem-like crazy over here. The cover presents us with a full 8-bit back story to help the new fans understand the upcoming comic event, Unity. It is a move that plays on video game levels, the current owners well aware that Valiant drew in a large crowd during the 90’s, at the height of the 8-bit game market. And it doubles back, giving new readers a chance to step into a story, and have the plot played out before their eyes in a unique and inviting way.

My only fear is this innovative bit of bait will be cast into the depths, buried beneath the classic “one out of fifty ordered” gimmick, that basically prevents its brilliance from reaching smaller shops and many new prying eyes.

Rain Partier

S.F. Jude Terror wrote:All the reviews and talk about how great Valiant's comics have been haven't gotten me nearly as interested in checking them out as this trailer. It's fantastic!

If you haven't already, do check them out. They're the guys doing the reboot thing right. And they have a legit reason for it.

The only book I'd advise you to stay away from is Shadowman, which is a pale shadow...excuse that...of its original incarnation. They ignore Jack in favor of a rather generic and boring Shadowman, when Jack was always the attraction, they give him a who cares supporting cast, and ignore New Orleans as a character in the story, like it was in the original.

XO is fine, even brilliant at times, capturing Aric pretty damn well, and at one point introducing a very intriguing Ninjak back to the Valiant-verse.

Archer and Armstrong is mostly good, though a bit hit and miss at times.

Harbinger is well, pretty much the Harbinger of old. Harada is still a great villain, more complex than most, and Sting, (Peter, rarely called Sting so far), is still a bit of a dick.

Bloodshot is getting better after a bit of a rocky start.

Eternal Warrior's first issue was very nice.

Quantum and Woody supplies the Giffenesque funny that missing from DC, (Archer and Armstrong is another "funny" book, played a bit less for outright humor. Honestly, Quantum and Woody reads more than a bit like the mostly forgotten Giffen gem The Heckler, or to a lesser extent his related series Vext.

Introducing the titles infrequently and one at a time allows people to hop on far more easily IMO than with DC's 52 issues at once.

And of course there's the wait for other titles like Ninjak, Rai, Armorines, Dr. Mirage, and hopefully replacements for Magnus and Solar among others.

Basically, they've done well, much better than Daniel Bryan. I'd rate them at least an A-...

Rain Partier

S.F. Jude Terror wrote:All the reviews and talk about how great Valiant's comics have been haven't gotten me nearly as interested in checking them out as this trailer. It's fantastic!

If you haven't already, do check them out. They're the guys doing the reboot thing right. And they have a legit reason for it.

The only book I'd advise you to stay away from is Shadowman, which is a pale shadow...excuse that...of its original incarnation. They ignore Jack in favor of a rather generic and boring Shadowman, when Jack was always the attraction, they give him a who cares supporting cast, and ignore New Orleans as a character in the story, like it was in the original.

XO is fine, even brilliant at times, capturing Aric pretty damn well, and at one point introducing a very intriguing Ninjak back to the Valiant-verse.

Archer and Armstrong is mostly good, though a bit hit and miss at times.

Harbinger is well, pretty much the Harbinger of old. Harada is still a great villain, more complex than most, and Sting, (Peter, rarely called Sting so far), is still a bit of a dick.

Bloodshot is getting better after a bit of a rocky start.

Eternal Warrior's first issue was very nice.

Quantum and Woody supplies the Giffenesque funny that missing from DC, (Archer and Armstrong is another "funny" book, played a bit less for outright humor. Honestly, Quantum and Woody reads more than a bit like the mostly forgotten Giffen gem The Heckler, or to a lesser extent his related series Vext.

Introducing the titles infrequently and one at a time allows people to hop on far more easily IMO than with DC's 52 issues at once.

And of course there's the wait for other titles like Ninjak, Rai, Armorines, Dr. Mirage, and hopefully replacements for Magnus and Solar among others.

Basically, they've done well, much better than Daniel Bryan. I'd rate them at least an A-...

Achilles is the kind of evil that hollows out a volcano for a lair, and sends killer robots after his enemies.---Lord Simian

Motherfucker from Hell

If you're down on Shadowman that much, I really don't see what you find intriguing about Ninjak. He's about as generic a "90s extreme badass" as they come. Like I said in another thread, I'm glad they're using those characters as supporting cast rather than throw everyone in their own book. Ninjak, Dr. Mirage, Geomancer and the Armorines (although I don't think we've seen them yet) don't really merit a book of their own and I'm glad HARD Corps was folded into Bloodshot. The one thing I would like to see them try with the minor characters is an anthology book. I do really want to see a Rai book though.

Motherfucker from Hell

If you're down on Shadowman that much, I really don't see what you find intriguing about Ninjak. He's about as generic a "90s extreme badass" as they come. Like I said in another thread, I'm glad they're using those characters as supporting cast rather than throw everyone in their own book. Ninjak, Dr. Mirage, Geomancer and the Armorines (although I don't think we've seen them yet) don't really merit a book of their own and I'm glad HARD Corps was folded into Bloodshot. The one thing I would like to see them try with the minor characters is an anthology book. I do really want to see a Rai book though.

Rain Partier

Regulator wrote:If you're down on Shadowman that much, I really don't see what you find intriguing about Ninjak. He's about as generic a "90s extreme badass" as they come. Like I said in another thread, I'm glad they're using those characters as supporting cast rather than throw everyone in their own book. Ninjak, Dr. Mirage, Geomancer and the Armorines (although I don't think we've seen them yet) don't really merit a book of their own and I'm glad HARD Corps was folded into Bloodshot. The one thing I would like to see them try with the minor characters is an anthology book. I do really want to see a Rai book though.

I think Ninjak has potential. Whether or not they realize it remains to be seen. The character COULD be done right. For example, I think a Billy Tucci treatment of the character would work well. Crossed with a touch of James Bond.

Whether characters like Dr. Mirage, Geomancer, or the Armorines could take a book and make it work is a gamble. I would think that Dr. Mirage at least could. Possibly. The Armorines were an interesting concept, and another shot for a Valiant team book, but whether they can hold a book in a reduced market is another question.

Which is one I'd even put for Rai. The only two other characters from old Valiant I'm certain could hold a book on their own aren't available to them any more.

An anthology title is a nice idea, but they seem to have trouble holding sales, so Valiant would have to be prepared to eat it on that title, and use it only as a way to introduce minor characters and mix them with the bigger ones.

Rain Partier

Regulator wrote:If you're down on Shadowman that much, I really don't see what you find intriguing about Ninjak. He's about as generic a "90s extreme badass" as they come. Like I said in another thread, I'm glad they're using those characters as supporting cast rather than throw everyone in their own book. Ninjak, Dr. Mirage, Geomancer and the Armorines (although I don't think we've seen them yet) don't really merit a book of their own and I'm glad HARD Corps was folded into Bloodshot. The one thing I would like to see them try with the minor characters is an anthology book. I do really want to see a Rai book though.

I think Ninjak has potential. Whether or not they realize it remains to be seen. The character COULD be done right. For example, I think a Billy Tucci treatment of the character would work well. Crossed with a touch of James Bond.

Whether characters like Dr. Mirage, Geomancer, or the Armorines could take a book and make it work is a gamble. I would think that Dr. Mirage at least could. Possibly. The Armorines were an interesting concept, and another shot for a Valiant team book, but whether they can hold a book in a reduced market is another question.

Which is one I'd even put for Rai. The only two other characters from old Valiant I'm certain could hold a book on their own aren't available to them any more.

An anthology title is a nice idea, but they seem to have trouble holding sales, so Valiant would have to be prepared to eat it on that title, and use it only as a way to introduce minor characters and mix them with the bigger ones.

Achilles is the kind of evil that hollows out a volcano for a lair, and sends killer robots after his enemies.---Lord Simian

WTF is this rank?

I'm not sure Geomancer could support her own book. I'd just keep her floating around like a Phantom Stranger type character. Somewhat mysterious, push the heroes into situation type character.

Dr. Mirage I'd build up to a title. I've liked what they did with her so far but right now I think the number of titles are just about right.

Ninjak definitely could be a good book. Tied in with MI-6 as an alien hunter type.

I've got an idea for Rai that wouldn't require the future world or Magnus.

The First Rai. Instead of sarin during subway gas attack in Tokyo, it was some form of mutagen. Half of the people died instantly. Tohru Nakadai, young police officer, rushes into the subway to try and rescue people but succumbs to the fumes.

He later wakes up in a hospital ward with a bunch of other people in the gas attack and sees people mutating into all sorts of monstrous type forms. He looks into a mirror and sees he's now albino with red eyes.

The suicide cult that set off the bombs seeing the opportunity to use these monsters to their advantage breaks into the hospital and "liberates" them. Tohru tries to stop them and fails. During the fighting he discovers he as the ability to generate some energy weapons.

Essentially the core concept is a Japanese monster movie with Rai as the hero, fighting for acceptance from the Japanese public who sees him as a bit of a monster himself. His fellow police officers don't know how to deal with their coworker any more.

WTF is this rank?

I'm not sure Geomancer could support her own book. I'd just keep her floating around like a Phantom Stranger type character. Somewhat mysterious, push the heroes into situation type character.

Dr. Mirage I'd build up to a title. I've liked what they did with her so far but right now I think the number of titles are just about right.

Ninjak definitely could be a good book. Tied in with MI-6 as an alien hunter type.

I've got an idea for Rai that wouldn't require the future world or Magnus.

The First Rai. Instead of sarin during subway gas attack in Tokyo, it was some form of mutagen. Half of the people died instantly. Tohru Nakadai, young police officer, rushes into the subway to try and rescue people but succumbs to the fumes.

He later wakes up in a hospital ward with a bunch of other people in the gas attack and sees people mutating into all sorts of monstrous type forms. He looks into a mirror and sees he's now albino with red eyes.

The suicide cult that set off the bombs seeing the opportunity to use these monsters to their advantage breaks into the hospital and "liberates" them. Tohru tries to stop them and fails. During the fighting he discovers he as the ability to generate some energy weapons.

Essentially the core concept is a Japanese monster movie with Rai as the hero, fighting for acceptance from the Japanese public who sees him as a bit of a monster himself. His fellow police officers don't know how to deal with their coworker any more.

Regular-Sized Poster

Chesscub wrote:I'm not sure Geomancer could support her own book. I'd just keep her floating around like a Phantom Stranger type character. Somewhat mysterious, push the heroes into situation type character.

Dr. Mirage I'd build up to a title. I've liked what they did with her so far but right now I think the number of titles are just about right.

Ninjak definitely could be a good book. Tied in with MI-6 as an alien hunter type.

I've got an idea for Rai that wouldn't require the future world or Magnus.

The First Rai. Instead of sarin during subway gas attack in Tokyo, it was some form of mutagen. Half of the people died instantly. Tohru Nakadai, young police officer, rushes into the subway to try and rescue people but succumbs to the fumes.

He later wakes up in a hospital ward with a bunch of other people in the gas attack and sees people mutating into all sorts of monstrous type forms. He looks into a mirror and sees he's now albino with red eyes.

The suicide cult that set off the bombs seeing the opportunity to use these monsters to their advantage breaks into the hospital and "liberates" them. Tohru tries to stop them and fails. During the fighting he discovers he as the ability to generate some energy weapons.

Essentially the core concept is a Japanese monster movie with Rai as the hero, fighting for acceptance from the Japanese public who sees him as a bit of a monster himself. His fellow police officers don't know how to deal with their coworker any more.

Regular-Sized Poster

Chesscub wrote:I'm not sure Geomancer could support her own book. I'd just keep her floating around like a Phantom Stranger type character. Somewhat mysterious, push the heroes into situation type character.

Dr. Mirage I'd build up to a title. I've liked what they did with her so far but right now I think the number of titles are just about right.

Ninjak definitely could be a good book. Tied in with MI-6 as an alien hunter type.

I've got an idea for Rai that wouldn't require the future world or Magnus.

The First Rai. Instead of sarin during subway gas attack in Tokyo, it was some form of mutagen. Half of the people died instantly. Tohru Nakadai, young police officer, rushes into the subway to try and rescue people but succumbs to the fumes.

He later wakes up in a hospital ward with a bunch of other people in the gas attack and sees people mutating into all sorts of monstrous type forms. He looks into a mirror and sees he's now albino with red eyes.

The suicide cult that set off the bombs seeing the opportunity to use these monsters to their advantage breaks into the hospital and "liberates" them. Tohru tries to stop them and fails. During the fighting he discovers he as the ability to generate some energy weapons.

Essentially the core concept is a Japanese monster movie with Rai as the hero, fighting for acceptance from the Japanese public who sees him as a bit of a monster himself. His fellow police officers don't know how to deal with their coworker any more.